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When most people think of beating the heat of summer they think of heading to the beach, but for me beating the heat is heading up to the mountains. Crowded hot beaches aren’t the way to escape the heat, if you really want to escape the heat you go on a glacier trek or summit an alpine peak. So here you go, 5 of my favorite places to beat the heat of summer.

Alberta- Home to glaciers, soaring peaks and electric blue/green alpine lakes. There really isn’t a better place to cool off then with a trip to Alberta. Glacier trekking, biking at 7,000 feet and riding through forest, hiking to alpine lakes and hanging glaciers. But my favorite way to cool of in Alberta is with a Canadian Kiss… A Canadian Kiss is a big splash of cold water to your face while your rafting down a river, it packs a lot bigger punch than a French kiss.

Glacier National Park- Just saying Glacier National Park should cool you off a little. Glacier is home to absolutely breathtaking views, gorgeous lakes and rich alpine valleys. The glaciers that carved out these magnificent rocky peaks are still at work, but not for too much longer. Cool off in Glacier while there are still glaciers to marvel at.

Yellowstone National Park- Yellowstone park is a world renown destination for adventure, but what better place to cool off then somewhere where theres snow in July! Yellowstone’s Plateau sits at 8,000 feet, being this high in elevation tends to leave the park at a pretty nice temperature in the summer. But if you do get hot try taking a dip in Yellowstone Lake, the largest freshwater lake above 7,000 feet.

Yosemite National Park- Growing up in Los Angeles, Yosemite was my getaway from the hot crowed beaches of Southern California. For me walking amongst giant 300ft tall giant Sequoia trees is a lot better than walking through crowds of people on the beach. Also the beach is lacking 3,000ft granite walls, huge waterfalls and an abundance of wildlife.

Austria- I can’t not include a country famous for its mountain peaks. Imagine cooling of in the same mountain meadows where they filmed “The Sound of Music” or cycling along the Salzach River. If that’s not enough to cool you off, you can always go paragliding over the Austrian Alps. Just a thought…

Well that’s it, 5 places that will help you beat the heat of summer! Also for your viewing pleasure I made a flickr galley: 50 Photos to beat the heat

How do you like to beat the heat? Leave a comment and let me know!

Your friendly mountain man,

Jonathan

P.S. I have been to all of these destinations, so if you have any question just shoot me an email: jon@austinlehman dot com